iDeal HarBest heading into winter season with increased product line
iDeal HarBest heading into winter season with increased product line
iDeal HarBest, a distributor of a full line of Mexican vegetables, will begin its 10th season with a more streamlined grower base and an increased organic product line.
Manny Fajardo, a partner and the director of sales at the Nogales, AZ-based company, said that iDeal decided to fine-tune its production areas ahead of this season and added a grower that provides 100 percent organic product.
“We now offer a full line of both conventional and organic vegetables,” he said. “From the beginning when we first started iDeal, we wanted to be a one-stop shop for our customers, and now we have achieved that goal.”
As a result of the new developments, Fajardo said iDeal enters the winter vegetable season on a high note “because we have so many top-quality items to offer our customers. The overall Nogales industry has some uncertainty with some markets, especially tomatoes, but I feel like we are in a good position to meet all of our clients’ needs.”
Fajardo said iDeal kicked off the fall/winter season the first week of November with conventional soft squash, eggplant, Shishito peppers, and English and Persian cucumbers, followed a week later by slicer cucumbers. Conventional hard squash, green beans, grape tomatoes, chili peppers and Bell peppers were expected to start in early December. Colored Bells and other conventional tomato varieties were due to follow in early January.
On the organic side, Fajardo said Italian and yellow squash began shipping Nov. 3, along with slicer and Persian cucumbers. Come December, green beans, eggplant and jalapeños were expected to join the organic mix, followed by green and colored Bells, mini sweet peppers, Roma tomatoes and hard squash at the beginning of the new year.
Regarding tomatoes, Fajardo said iDeal offers conventional grapes, Romas and rounds, as well as organic Romas. He said the company was out of the round deal for a while, but began handling them again this year in order to provide a full-line to its customers.
Another highlight for iDeal is its mini sweet pepper program, which is available in both conventional and organic formats. Fajardo said the company has offered mini sweets for the past eight years and works with a top grower of the item.
“We are very high on our mini sweets because our grower is very experienced and, in fact, was one of the early pioneers of the mini sweet pepper category,” said Fajardo.
Fajardo said a key benefit of working with iDeal is the high level of service the company offers to its clients.
“We are available to help 24/7,” he said. “We are happy to work on contracts and provide private labeling and special packaging. When you work with us at iDeal, you are dealing directly with the owners and not getting lost in many levels of management. We are always transparent with our customers and that goes a long way to earning their trust.”
Fajardo said iDeal HarBest is looking forward to promoting its full line of conventional and organic items at the 2026 SWIPE, which will be held in Tucson in January.
